See what the recruiter sees

If you've ever jobhunted online than no doubt you have applied for a job using one of those Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) on a company website. Typically the larger the company, the more likely it is that they will utilize one of these systems.

When you submit your resume and other information to them they usually rank you according to your answers and the keywords found in your resume. Below is an example of a sample ranking for a job. Note how the candidates are ranked via a percentage. You can also see that there are literally hundreds of candidates for this job as evidenced by the page links above the results. Imagine if you were on page 40! Talk about being buried.



My point in showing you this is that there are certain rules to follow when applying on a company website. These rules will help move you up in the rankings you see above.

1. Apply to only the jobs you are qualified for. Dont use their site to apply to every job you see.

2. Use the same language they use in the job description. Dont assume the industry jargon you use will be understood.

3. Don't leave blank answers. Answer every question truthfully.

4. Make sure you spell check everything.

5. Mention your best skills up front so the software flags it as the most recent.

6. If you've been referred by an employee there, be sure to mention it.